I'm in Hollywood

Chapter 256: Because of the suspense

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It's not over yet, according to box office statistics, "The Others" has not dropped in its second week, and even shown a slight increase during the first few working days. "It's very simple," Eric said in response to Jonathan Demme's curiosity at the Sunset Tower Hotel banquet hall, "because of suspense! In 'The Others', I set up enough suspense, such as the fog in the Graces' house, the dream Graces had at the beginning, and the implied meanings in the lines. Most importantly, the unexpected ending with the reversal of humans and ghosts has attracted moviegoers to repeatedly enter the cinema to find out the root cause. After all, humans are the most curious animals, and I also gave Disney ideas to promote it through newspapers or TV shows to maximize the curiosity of moviegoers, leading to this situation. "

Jonathan Demme asked again, "So, if there are enough analyses of the plot in the newspaper, gradually solving all the suspense, does it mean that the box office potential of this movie will end here?" Eric shook his head and gave a sly smile: "It's inevitable that such analysis will appear in reviews, but don't worry, such a situation is impossible. For instance, there is still the question of why Grace killed her two children, which even the three-hour cut of the Venice screening did not have a clear answer to, only some obscure hints in the dialogue of the characters. According to these hints, someone may think that it was because the Nazi soldiers occupied the island, and in order to avoid being discovered by the enemy, Grace covered the two children and didn't let them make a sound, thus inadvertently killing them. Others may argue that according to the hint, Grace killed the children most likely after the war, so she was either crazy or had other reasons. In short, it is difficult to find a unified answer, and in order to find more evidence to persuade the other party, someone will watch the movie again."

Jonathan Demme seemed to have understood something, nodding his head. Then he asked, "Eric, when shooting this movie, I've nearly memorized the script, but I really don't understand why Grace killed her two children. Do you know what's the matter?"

"Well, I don't know either," Eric replied.

Jonathan Demme looked at him in disbelief, raising his voice in surprise, "You don't know either?"

"Yes, because I never thought about it. At the beginning, I didn't think of any reason why Grace would kill two children. I just wrote out this story, and in the story Grace killed her two children, and then everything in the big house happened."

Jonathan Demme laughed and said, "No wonder you weren't worried. I guess there are many mysteries in it and you don't have the answers for them, right?"

"Bingo!" Eric smiled and snapped his fingers.

The two of them laughed together, and then Jonathan Demme said, "Oh right, Eric, Miss Murdoch contacted me about the script of 'The Silence of the Lambs'. I heard you're interested in it. I've agreed to it."

Eric was stunned. Jonathan Demme must have had a reason for bringing up this topic. He asked, "Is there a problem?"

"Yes," Jonathan Dime nodded, "Miss Murdoch said that you recommended Judy Foster to play the female lead. But after I read the script a few times, I think Michelle Pfeiffer might be more appropriate." Eric recalled and quickly remembered the profile of this woman. Michelle Pfeiffer has good acting skills and has been nominated for several Oscars for her previous roles, but she has no representative works. Moreover, this blond beauty and Claire in Judy Foster's "The Silence of the Lambs" have little similarity.

Although Eric wished that Judy Foster would star in the lead role, he didn't interfere much if Jonathan Demme insisted. Nonetheless, he noticed that the money spent on buying and adapting the rights for the movie seemed slightly higher than usual, but he didn't think the little girl had secretly spent three million US dollars. Even if he had found out, he would only have spanked the little girl's butt and been done with it; he still didn't know that Drew had a 30% stake in TG Films.

"Why do you think Michelle Pfeiffer is suitable for the role?" After pondering for a while, Eric still couldn't understand, so he posed the question to Jonathan Demme.

I have seen several of Michelle Pfeiffer's films, especially her Oscar-nominated performances in last year's "Dangerous Liaisons" and "The Witches of Eastwick" with Jack Nicholson, Cher, and Susan Sarandon. Pfeiffer is a very versatile actress, and her acting is more than sufficient to bring diverse characters to life. I think she could make the character of Clarice even more perfect.

Eric nodded, as Jonathan Demme had become a respected director with the success of "The Silence of the Lambs". Although he knew that if he expressed his opinion, Jonathan, who was still grateful to him for giving him the opportunity, would likely take his advice. However, Eric was no longer a producer, and getting involved in this matter would only lead to unpopularity.

Maybe we can also consider the idea of what would have happened if the lead actress of "The Silence of the Lambs" had been replaced with Michelle Pfeiffer - would it have had the same effect? It's an interesting thought, isn't it?

According to Jonathan Demme's style, the movie would be almost the same as the original one, replacing the lead actress to prove if it's the character that makes the actor, or the actor that makes the character. Eric and Jonathan discussed the idea, and Eric suggested that if Jonathan could convince Liz to take the lead role, he could go ahead with his plan. Jonathan nodded confidently and after a few words, the two parted ways. Eric then meandered through the crowd at the party, passing by a dining table, when he inadvertently heard a few people gathered together seemingly talking about something related to "The Others". He then curiously joined in.

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